Crowdsourcing the Boston bombing investigation - Tech Tonic

Wednesday, April 17, 2013 - 02:20

Amateur sleuths from across the Internet are piecing together images from the Boston Marathon bombing and weighing in on Reddit with their ideas about the devices and potential suspects. (April 17, 2012)

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I'm at it -- is on the social media editor for Reuters and have been noticing specifically on red at the people -- crowd sourcing the investigation. -- photos and videos to people were capturing with their cellphones. At the marathon when that explosion taking place there's a thing called a -- granite -- -- it is when people branch off of the main portion of -- To talk about specific things in this case they're talking about. Evidence photos and videos that they've found on the Internet for people who were at the bombings when it happens. They're also looking at photos that the FBI released. Of the components of the bomb the pressure cooker. That was used to -- create the exclusion so that they're trying to tie back what the FBI released and what the funding of social media. Two other. Households. Components RC. Components that people use for radio controlled planes. Radio controlled cars. And try to. Almost profile what type of person man of design this bomb where they would've gotten the components here's an example of one of them. This is the top post on the page right now. That people are picking through which has all the different pieces this is a shot at the FBI released. One of the electronics that was found. And you can see there and imitating the photos and saying that there's a capacitor founding circuits are often found. In between motor controllers are trying to figure out where's the source of the components that were found and Obama. They also noticed that there as it some more sophisticated RC receiver. In the photo. That the FBI released and they are trying to point that -- Other RC components. There's a couple of things you have to keep in mind since this is being done over the Internet it's not being done professional capacity. There's potential for people photo shopping these images. There's potential for people having. A cause or an activist trying to push. The investigation certain direction whether it's domestic or foreign. It's it's being done messy and in real time. And done by amateurs so. It's it's interesting to look at but you have to keep those things in mind when you're looking at what conclusions are coming.